Diastereoselective microbial reduction of (S)-[3-chloro-2-oxo-1-(phenylmethyl)propyl]carbamic acid, 1,1-dimethylethyl ester

Actinobacteria as Microbial Cell Factories and Biocatalysts in The Synthesis of Chiral Intermediates and Bioactive Molecules; Insights and Applications

Actinobacteria are one of the most intriguing bacterial phyla in terms of chemical diversity and bioactivities of their reported biomolecules and natural products, including various types of chiral molecules. Actinobacterial genera such as Detzia, Mycobacterium, and Streptomyces are among the microbial sources targeted for selective reactions such as asymmetric biocatalysis catalyzed by whole cells or enzymes induced in their cell niche. Remarkably, stereoselective reactions catalyzed by actinobacterial whole cells or their enzymes include stereoselective oxidation, stereoselective reduction, kinetic resolution, asymmetric hydrolysis, and selective transamination, among others. Species of actinobacteria function with high chemo-, regio-, and enantio-selectivity under benign conditions, which could help current industrial processing. Numerous selective enzymes were either isolated from actinobacteria or expressed from actinobacteria in other microbes and hence exploited in the production of pure organic compounds difficult to obtain chemically. In addition, different species of actinobacteria, especially Streptomyces species, function as natural producers of chiral molecules of therapeutic importance. Herein, we discuss some of the most outstanding contributions of actinobacteria to asymmetric biocatalysis, which are important in the organic and/or pharmaceutical industries. In addition, we highlight the role of actinobacteria as microbial cell factories for chiral natural products with insights into their various biological potentialities.

Rhodococcus strains as a good biotool for neutralizing pharmaceutical pollutants and obtaining therapeutically valuable products: Through the past into the future

Active pharmaceutical ingredients present a substantial risk when they reach the environment and drinking water sources. As a new type of dangerous pollutants with high chemical resistance and pronounced biological effects, they accumulate everywhere, often in significant concentrations (μg/L) in ecological environments, food chains, organs of farm animals and humans, and cause an intense response from the aquatic and soil microbiota. Rhodococcus spp. (Actinomycetia class), which occupy a dominant position in polluted ecosystems, stand out among other microorganisms with the greatest variety of degradable pollutants and participate in natural attenuation, are considered as active agents with high transforming and degrading impacts on pharmaceutical compounds. Many representatives of rhodococci are promising as unique sources of specific transforming enzymes, quorum quenching tools, natural products and novel antimicrobials, biosurfactants and nanostructures. The review presents the latest knowledge and current trends regarding the use of Rhodococcus spp. in the processes of pharmaceutical pollutants’ biodegradation, as well as in the fields of biocatalysis and biotechnology for the production of targeted pharmaceutical products. The current literature sources presented in the review can be helpful in future research programs aimed at promoting Rhodococcus spp. as potential biodegraders and biotransformers to control pharmaceutical pollution in the environment.

Green Chemistry in the Synthesis of Pharmaceuticals

The principles of green chemistry (GC) can be comprehensively implemented in green synthesis of pharmaceuticals by choosing no solvents or green solvents (preferably water), alternative reaction media, and consideration of one-pot synthesis, multicomponent reactions (MCRs), continuous processing, and process intensification approaches for atom economy and final waste reduction. The GC's execution in green synthesis can be performed using a holistic design of the active pharmaceutical ingredient's (API) life cycle, minimizing hazards and pollution, and capitalizing the resource efficiency in the synthesis technique. Thus, the presented review accounts for the comprehensive exploration of GC's principles and metrics, an appropriate implication of those ideas in each step of the reaction schemes, from raw material to an intermediate to the final product's synthesis, and the final execution of the synthesis into scalable industry-based production. For real-life examples, we have discussed the synthesis of a series of established generic pharmaceuticals, starting with the raw materials, and the intermediates of the corresponding pharmaceuticals. Researchers and industries have thoughtfully instigated a green synthesis process to control the atom economy and waste reduction to protect the environment. We have extensively discussed significant reactions relevant for green synthesis, one-pot cascade synthesis, MCRs, continuous processing, and process intensification, which may contribute to the future of green and sustainable synthesis of APIs.

Shortening Synthetic Routes to Small Molecule Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Employing Biocatalytic Methods

Biocatalysis, using enzymes for organic synthesis, has emerged as powerful tool for the synthesis of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). The first industrial biocatalytic processes launched in the first half of the last century exploited whole-cell microorganisms where the specific enzyme at work was not known. In the meantime, novel molecular biology methods, such as efficient gene sequencing and synthesis, triggered breakthroughs in directed evolution for the rapid development of process-stable enzymes with broad substrate scope and good selectivities tailored for specific substrates. To date, enzymes are employed to enable shorter, more efficient, and more sustainable alternative routes toward (established) small molecule APIs, and are additionally used to perform standard reactions in API synthesis more efficiently. Herein, large-scale synthetic routes containing biocatalytic key steps toward >130 APIs of approved drugs and drug candidates are compared with the corresponding chemical protocols (if available) regarding the steps, reaction conditions, and scale. The review is structured according to the functional group formed in the reaction.

Biocatalytic routes to anti-viral agents and their synthetic intermediates

An assessment of biocatalytic strategies for the synthesis of anti-viral agents, offering guidelines for the development of sustainable production methods for a future COVID-19 remedy.

Landscape and opportunities for active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturing in developing African economies

This review will highlight the opportunities that exist in the localization of cutting-edge manufacturing technologies within an African context.

Recent advances in biotechnological applications of alcohol dehydrogenases

Alcohol dehydrogenases (ADHs), which belong to the oxidoreductase superfamily, catalyze the interconversion between alcohols and aldehydes or ketones with high stereoselectivity under mild conditions. ADHs are widely employed as biocatalysts for the dynamic kinetic resolution of racemic substrates and for the preparation of enantiomerically pure chemicals. This review provides an overview of biotechnological applications for ADHs in the production of chiral pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals.

Characterizing and predicting carboxylic acid reductase activity for diversifying bioaldehyde production

Chemicals with aldehyde moieties are useful in the synthesis of polymerization reagents, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, flavors, and fragrances because of their high reactivity. However, chemical synthesis of aldehydes from carboxylic acids has unfavorable thermodynamics and limited specificity. Enzymatically catalyzed reductive bioaldehyde synthesis is an attractive route that overcomes unfavorable thermodynamics by ATP hydrolysis in ambient, aqueous conditions. Carboxylic acid reductases (Cars) are particularly attractive, as only one enzyme is required. We sought to increase the knowledge base of permitted substrates for four Cars. Additionally, the Lys2 enzyme family was found to be mechanistically the same as Cars and two isozymes were also tested. Our results show that Cars prefer molecules where the carboxylic acid is the only polar/charged group. Using this data and other published data, we develop a support vector classifier (SVC) for predicting Car reactivity and make predictions on all carboxylic acid metabolites in iAF1260 and Model SEED.

Continuous flow synthesis of α-halo ketones: essential building blocks of antiretroviral agents

The development of a continuous flow process for the multistep synthesis of α-halo ketones starting from N-protected amino acids is described. The obtained α-halo ketones are chiral building blocks for the synthesis of HIV protease inhibitors, such as atazanavir and darunavir. The synthesis starts with the formation of a mixed anhydride in a first tubular reactor. The anhydride is subsequently combined with anhydrous diazomethane in a tube-in-tube reactor. The tube-in-tube reactor consists of an inner tube, made from a gas-permeable, hydrophobic material, enclosed in a thick-walled, impermeable outer tube. Diazomethane is generated in the inner tube in an aqueous medium, and anhydrous diazomethane subsequently diffuses through the permeable membrane into the outer chamber. The α-diazo ketone is produced from the mixed anhydride and diazomethane in the outer chamber, and the resulting diazo ketone is finally converted to the halo ketone with anhydrous ethereal hydrogen halide. This method eliminates the need to store, transport, or handle diazomethane and produces α-halo ketone building blocks in a multistep system without racemization in excellent yields. A fully continuous process allowed the synthesis of 1.84 g of α-chloro ketone from the respective N-protected amino acid within ~4.5 h (87% yield).

Biocatalytic synthesis of chiral alcohols and amino acids for development of pharmaceuticals

Chirality is a key factor in the safety and efficacy of many drug products and thus the production of single enantiomers of drug intermediates and drugs has become increasingly important in the pharmaceutical industry. There has been an increasing awareness of the enormous potential of microorganisms and enzymes derived there from for the transformation of synthetic chemicals with high chemo-, regio- and enatioselectivities. In this article, biocatalytic processes are described for the synthesis of chiral alcohols and unntural aminoacids for pharmaceuticals.

Industrial biotransformations in the synthesis of building blocks leading to enantiopure drugs

Due to the growing demand of enantiomerically pure compounds, as well as the increasing strict safety, quality and environmentally requirements of industrial synthetic processes, the development of more sustainable, healthy and economically attractive strategies for the synthesis of chiral biologically active molecules is still an open challenge in the pharmaceutical industry. In this context, the biotransformations field has emerged as a real alternative to traditional synthetic routes, because of the exquisite chemo-, regio- and enantioselectivities commonly displayed by enzymes; thus, biocatalysis is becoming a widespread methodology for the synthesis of chiral compounds, not only at laboratory scale, but also at industrial scale. As hydrolases and oxido-reductases are the most employed enzymes, this review is focused on describing several industrial processes based on the use of these enzymes for obtaining chiral compounds useful for the pharmaceutical industry.